Neck-band clamp for laundry presses



.STANLEY MARv/N ATTORNEY.

S. MARVIN NWEGKi-BAND CLAMP FOR LAUNDRY PRESSES Filed Feb. 20, 1937 2 sheets-sheet 2 Patented Dec. 27, 1938 NECK-BAND CLAMP FOR LAUNDRY PRESSES Stanley Marvin, San Francisco, Calif., assigner, by mesnel assignments, to B; E. Witkin, Oakland,

Calif.

Application February 20,1937, Serial No. 126,859

6 Claims.

This invention relates to laundry presses as used for pressing or pressure-ironing of shirts, and the principal object of the invention is to provide an improved manually operated clamp for holding the neck-band ofthe shirt at one end of the pressing buck. A further object is to provide sucha clamp device which may'be operated by `one hand. Another Objectis a clamp of this kind which will automatically grip the neck-band of the shirt when the handle of the clamp is given a short movement and be entirely yout of the wayv when released so as not to interfere with the placing or removal of shirts in pressing or ironing the samer.

VOther features and advantages of the invention will appear in the following description and accompanying drawings,-

` In thev drawings:

Figure lis a side elevation of my improved neck-band clamp with the clamping strap in neck-band gripping position;

Figure 2 is a View similar to that of Figure l,` but shown in vertical centra-l' section;

Figure 3 is a vertical central section of the device in open or released position;

Figure 4 is a plan View of Figure l;

Figure 5 is a front elevation of Figure l.

Before describing the drawings in detail,i it may be said that the type oflaundry press with which my invention is particularly adapted has a lower buck over which the shirt to be pressed or ironed is stretched, land an upper buck which comes down when the press is closed to tightly press the garment. Either one or'both bucks are heated' to effect the required ironing of the garment.

In the drawings a portion only of the lower buck'is shown in dotted lines at l and at the end of which my neck-band clamp device is secured. f

The device comprises abase member 2 secured as by bolts 3 to the buck and provided with an upstanding ange 4 formed to receive around it the neck band 5 of a shirt 6 when the bosom 1 of the shirt is on top of the buck and the back 8 of the shirt hangs under the buck. The flange preferably has a. gap in it at 9 (as shown in Figures 4 and 5) to facilitate placing the neck-band with the fingers, and also an upstanding wire loop l0 in front to function as a support for the collars ll of collar-attached shirts, which are turned up when placed on the press as indicated by the dotted lines.

The base member 4' is formed with an upwardly extending bracket portion I2 having two arms I3 to which the strap head ill is pivoted on a horizontal shaft. i5. This shaft l5 is secured against rotation in the arms I3 as by pins i6 and carries afspur pinion il keyed or otherwise secured thereto and positioned within the side walls 5 of the head I4 which forms a protective housing therefor.

Extending loosely through the head and through two bosses I8 formed on the outersides thereof parallel to shaft i5 is another shaft lil lo which'has keyed to it another pinion 2i] in mesh with pinion Il, while secured/to the shaft Vi9 or tothe sides of pinions 2li are two flat lever arms 2| `joined at their free ends by a pin 22, which, when the head is rotated on pivot i5 from the position of Figure 3 to that of Figure 2, swings this pin ,22 with a faster motion downward to the right to engage into an open ended slot 23 in a pivotallymounted latch 2@ whichl automatically springs over a center to hold pin 22 and the head I4 down in position shown in Figure 2.

Latch 24 is pinned to a shaft 25 which is revolvably supported in arms i3 and has a pair of short upwardly projecting levers 26 pinned to its ends which are engaged at their outer ends each by a coiled tension spring 2l', the lower end of which is hooked to a boss 28 on the base 2.

At the upper end of the head i4 is a handle 29 which is swung through a curve in operating the device, or from position of Figure 3 to that 30 ci Figure 2, and secured to the outer ends of shaft I9 are rigid arms 30 carrying at their ends a strap 3l. This strap is preferably of thin metal and is formed to l'lt around the forward curved portion of the flange t and clamp the 3- shirtneek-band thereagainst when handle 29 is pushed overvto the right as shown in- Figure 2, and swing upward out of the way when the handle is pushed over to the left as shown in Figure 3q y 6 It will be noted that though the handle is moved but about 90 of arc, the strap has swung from the horizontal against the neck-band (Figure 2) again to the horizontal above the handle (Figure 3) or through an arc of 180. This is due to the action of spur gear 20 rolling around f xed gear Il.

When the strap is down and engaging the outside of the neck-band as shown in Figure 2, it is evident that since it arrived at that position by swinging down around the axis of shaft I9 as it rolls around shaft l5, through the action of the gears, anything tending to swing it still further down will also force it toward the flange 4 and thus clamp the neck-band more firmly. To auresiliently urged to turn to the right, as springs f 21 are pulling to the right of axis v25, but the latch is prevented from turning as its lower end 2Q is stopped by bracket wall l2. However,

when the head id is swung over toward theV right pin 22 enters slot 23 and forces latch 24 to the left, together with levers 26, thus carrying the upper ends of springs 2l to the left of pin 25 so that the pull of the springs is transferred to the left of the pin and tends to urge lever arms 2l still further down, and thus resiliently` hold the strap in clamping position, without the necessity of the operator holding onto the handle, so that he may then use both hands in stretching the shirt bosom over the buck and smoothing it out preparatory to closing down the upper buck to press it.

In releasing the neck-band clamping device, a slight leftward push of the handle reverses` the position of springs il? so that it moves with substantially no eiort to position 3, bringing its rear j edge I4 against a stop rib or lug S2 on bracket sides or arms i3.

From the above description the construction and operation of my improved neck-band clamp should be clearly understood by those skilled in the art and its advantages realized. A feature of particular importance is that the device is relatively very small so that the shirt neck easily goes over it in putting on or taking o the shirts. In Figure 3 between the shirt and the buck is indicated the usual padding 33 used on the bucks in this work.

Having thus described my invention, and its manner of operation, what I claim is:

1. In a laundry press, a shirt neck-band clamping device comprising a base portion adapted to be secured to a press buck and provided with an upstanding flange formed to receive the neckband, a strap formed to embrace the outer side of the neck-band for clamping it to the flange, an upwardly extending bracket on said base portion, a head'portion pivoted on a horizontal axis Vto said bracket and provided with an operating handle, a shaft carried by said head portion andV to which said strapris secLued, and cooperating means carried by said head andV base portion arranged and adapted to swing said strap into and out of clamping position at a higher angular Velocity than that of the head when the head is swung. Y

2. In a laundry press, a shirt neck-band clamping device comprising a base portion adap-ted to be secured to a press buck and provided with an upstanding iiange formed to receivethe neckband, a strap formed to embrace the outer side of the neck-band for clamping itV to the flange,

an upwardly extending bracket on said base portion, a head portion pivoted on a horizontal axis to said bracket and provided with an operating handle, a shaft carriedby said head portion and to which said strap is operatively connected, and cooperating gear means carried by said head and base arranged and adapted to swing said strap into and out of clamping position at a higher angular velocity than that of said head when the head is swung.

bracket and provided with an operating handle,A

a shaft carried by said head portion, arms extending from the ends of said shaft and to which said Strap is secured, and cooperating planetary gear means carried by said head and base arranged and adapted to swing said strap into and out of clamping position at a higher angular Velocity than that of said head when the head is swung.

li. In a construction as specified in claim 3, resilient retaining means adapted and arranged to engage said head and force it toward clamping position. Y

5. In a construction as specified in claim 3, resilientY retaining means adapted and arranged torenga'ge said head and force it to clamping position, during motion of said head toward the buck and lto yieldingly allow the release of said head as the head is swung toward released position.

6. In a shirt neck-band clamp of the character described, a hand operated head mounted to swing in an arc in a vertical plane, means-mounting a clamping strap for swinging with the head to clamping and released positions with respect to a cooperating neck-band form fastened to a pressing buck, and spring toggle means adapted and arranged to engage the strap mountingV means and resiliently force said strap to clamping position said spring toggle means including a lever pivotally mounted with respect to said neck band form, cooperating means operatively connected with said head and said lever and consisting of a projection operatively associated with one,v and a slotted member operatively associated with the other, and stop means to limit the motion of said lever away from an engaging position to a position substantially tangent to the arcuate path of said cooperating means associated with the head,

- said spring toggle' being arranged and adapted 

